


Sugar On My Tongue

by allstoriesintheend



Category: Star Wars Sequel Trilogy
Genre: A Dyad in the force, Alternate Universe - Modern Setting, Baker AU, Christmas Fluff, F/M, Florist AU, Flowers, Rey loves flowers, Reylo - Freeform, Soft Ben Solo, Weddings, a pair of clueless idiots, a true dyad, absolute buffoons, ben the baker, exactly one braincell between them, the softeness
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-03-01
Updated: 2020-03-27
Packaged: 2021-02-28 05:06:49
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 6
Words: 12,513
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/22978108
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/allstoriesintheend/pseuds/allstoriesintheend
Summary: Naberrie Bakery stood upon the opposite street from Takodana Flowers, with Rey and Ben passing each other every day, or waving to each other from across the streets; Rey surrounded by her flowers and Ben decorating cakes in the window. It had been the same pattern for almost three years, ever since Rey had arrived in Naboo.Prompt - AU where Rey is a florist in a small town and Ben owns a bakery in the same town. They always work together for special occasions, especially weddings. Everyone in town knows they’re in love but them.
Relationships: Kylo Ren/Rey, Leia Organa/Han Solo, Rey & Ben Solo, Rey & Ben Solo | Kylo Ren
Comments: 90
Kudos: 439
Collections: Reylo Prompt Fills (@reylo_prompts)





	1. Chapter 1

Rey Niima loves a handful of things.  
  
  
1\. The little town of Naboo that she lives in, where everyone seems to know each other.  
  
  
2\. The quaint flower shop she owns that’s nestled in the centre of town, upon the corner of a street.  
  
  
3\. The tightknit group of friends that she found when she arrived in Naboo.  
  
  
 ~~4\. Ben Solo.~~

Except – Rey doesn’t quite know about that last one.  
  


* * *

  
  
The bell rung at the front of Takodana Flowers, alerting Rey Niima to someone entering. Rey’s head appeared amongst the flowers she had been kneeling down to tend to, craning her neck to see who the visitor was. Once she caught a proper sight, Rey rose with a bright smile playing on her lips. Her hands brushed down her green apron, then rise to her hair to make sure that the three buns she had thrown her brown locks in that morning were still tied, before she made her way out from between the buckets of flowers to greet the visitor with a knock of her hip against the woman’s own.  
  
“Ready?” Kaydel Connix’s voice filled the shop as Rey made her way to the counter, untying her apron.  
  
“I’ve been ready for hours,” Rey nodded to him. “The arrangements are just waiting to be loaded into the van.”  
  
“Keys? I’ll go and do it.”  
  
Rey fished into the till, grabbing the set of keys to throw to Kaydel, who caught them with ease. Once Kaydel had started to move, Rey removed her apron and folded it over, placing it upon the countertop. She made the short journey back to the front of the shop where Kaydel had rung the bell barely minutes before, locking it and pulling down the yellow blind to cover the glass, just after she had flipped the sign from ‘Open’ to ‘Closed’. Rey then turned on heel, following Kaydel to the back door of the shop where she had carefully boxed the arrangements they were about to transport to their destination.  
  
“Is he nervous?”  
  
“Finn? Nervous?” Kaydel laughed, waving her hand over her shoulder. “Haven’t you checked your phone?”  
  
“I’ve been busy doing the flowers,” Rey replied, digging her fingers into the pocket of her jeans to retrieve her phone so that she could quickly scroll through the group chat she was a part of. There were several texts between Kaydel, Finn and Rose, Finn’s seeming to grow less panicked the further she scrolled down. She shot over a quick text to the chat, telling them that she and Kaydel would be arriving with the flowers shortly.  
  
“At least Rose is there to help out,” Rey commented, slipping her phone back into her pocket.  
  
“Yeah.” Kaydel informed her as they made their way out of the back door, both with boxes in their arms. “She’s in between getting ready and making sure that Finn’s okay.”  
  
“How’s Poe doing?”  
  
“Poe’s Poe, Rey.”  
  
Kaydel lowered her box carefully to the floor so that she could open the back doors to the yellow van, climbing inside. Rey passed up her box so that Kaydel could carefully start loading the boxes in; arrangements consisting of beautiful orange peonies, ivory and peach roses, wispy thlaspi, and baby’s breath, wrapped together with white ribbons around every arrangement in a perfect bow. They were a collection of flowers that Rey had picked out specifically for Finn, after being entrusted with the task only days after Finn had gotten engaged.  
  
Rey owned the only flower shop in the town of Naboo – Takodana Flowers, a quaint shop standing proud in the middle of town. She had taken over from Maz Kanata, the previous owner, a little over two years ago after working for only a half a year previously, ever since Rey had arrived in Naboo with little more than her name, her old car, and the little amount of money she had managed to scrape together from her time in Jakku before she had gotten out from under her foster father. Naboo suited Rey far better than the unforgiving town of Jakku had. The town was picturesque, beautiful in a way Rey had never seen, and filled with more greenery than she ever could have imagined existed.  
  
“Ben’s already there.”  
  
Kaydel’s voice brought Rey out of her thoughts. Her brows raised as she passed up a third box, watching her secure it.  
  
“Oh?”  
  
She reached to tuck a loose strand of hair behind her ear, feeling the brush of it curl around. Her attention shifted from Kaydel and back toward the door, heading to collect another box from inside the shop, missing the way Kaydel’s eyes rolled, and her gaze seemed to linger upon her for a moment too long.  
  
“Yeah. I saw him heading in as I was leaving.” Kaydel paused, chuckling under her breath as Rey brought him another box to place in the back of the van.  
  
“You know, with all the weddings you two work together, you should start a joint business. Or start carpooling, at least.”  
  
“Don’t be ridiculous.”  
  
With a roll of her eyes, Rey returned to the van with the final box of arrangements, passing it toward Kaydel with a shake of her head. She pressed the back of one hand against her forehead, wiping away the small sheen of sweat she had developed.  
  
“It’s a small town, Kaydel. We’re bound to run into each other.”  
  
“At _every_ event.”  
  
“He owns the bakery!” Rey laughed, pushing one of the van doors closed as Kaydel jumped down from inside. “What do you expect?”  
  
“I’m just saying!” Kaydel shrugged, shutting the other door to secure the back of the van. “Don’t you think you and Ben work well together?”   
  
“We don’t work together, Kaydel. We just happen to work the same weddings.” Rey moved to the front of the van along with her, taking the keys from Kaydel so that she could drive instead.  
  
“Besides, he’s Poe’s best man. He was bound to be there.”  
  
Rey missed the way that Kaydel’s eyes rolled as they both got into the front of the van, Rey humming along to the music that started almost instantly as she turned the key into the ignition. Rey turned to face the other woman with a smile, nodding toward the back of the van.  
  
“Come on. We have a wedding to set up.”   
  


* * *

  
  
Ben Solo loves a handful of things.

  1. The town of Naboo that Ben had found his way back to after years away.



  1. The bakery that he owns, that had once belonged to his maternal grandmother.



  1. His family, and how close they’ve become now that he’s finally come home to them.



  1. ~~Rey Niima.~~



Except – Ben doesn’t quite know about that last one.  
  


* * *

  
“You know, Rey’s coming.”  
  
“I’d be surprised if she wasn't, Dameron.”  
  
Ben Solo briefly looked up from his small notecards, his speech to give at the reception, as duty of the ‘best man’ Poe had so kindly bestowed upon him – something Ben hadn’t stopped ‘grumbling about’, as Poe had commented more than once – to raise a brow at the man who was still fussing with his suit, almost thirty minutes – and counting – after he had put it on.  
  
“She’s Finn’s best woman, isn’t she?”  
  
“In between doing all the arrangements, yeah.”  
  
As Ben turned his attention back to his notecards, Poe’s brows raised. He turned to look at Ben, shaking his head softly in a way that wouldn’t gain attention.  
  
“Rey’s arrangements are always beautiful,” Ben commented. “You’re lucky to have her do them.”  
  


“It’s not like she could be talked out of it,” Poe laughed. “Same way you couldn’t be talked out of doing the cake.”  
  
“Not for lack of trying.”  
  
Ben, much like Rey, owned the only shop of its kind in the town of Naboo. Naberrie Bakery had stood long and proud in the town, passed down through the generations on his maternal grandmother’s side, until it had come to his Uncle Luke, and finally, Ben himself. In truth, it would have been Ben’s long ago, but life had led him down a path that had pulled him from his family, until almost ten years had passed and Ben had found his way back to Naboo, and back to the bakery itself five years before.  
  
Naberrie Bakery stood upon the opposite street from Takodana Flowers, with Rey and Ben passing each other every day, or waving to each other from across the streets; Rey surrounded by her flowers and Ben decorating cakes in the window. It had been the same pattern for almost three years, ever since Rey had arrived in Naboo. They had worked their first wedding together not long after that, Rey under the careful eye of Maz Kanata, and Ben with his Uncle Luke, who had since retired from the Bakery.  
  
Ben continued to read his notes, missing the way Poe’s gaze appeared to linger upon him, and the light exhale of breath that the other man gave. Poe watched for a moment longer before he took his phone from inside his suit jacket, quickly scrolling through the texts he had received.  
  
“Rey’s here now, actually.”  
  
Ben’s attention fell back to Poe, and – finally – the notecards were tucked away into Ben’s inside pocket of his suit. Poe waved his phone at Ben, gesturing to the texts that were on the screen.  
  
“She’s just setting up. You should go and help her.”  
  
“I’m not a florist.”  
  
“No, but she’s putting some arrangements on the same table as the cake is.” Poe rolled his eyes. “Maybe your input would be useful.”  
  
“I really doubt Rey needs my help.”  
  


“Just go and help her, would you? You’re making _me_ nervous with all your rereading and silence. Send Kaydel up. You’ll be more help than she’s being.”  
  
“You know who would be more help? That orange monster you call a cat.”  
  
Ben grunted just as Poe made to open his mouth again. One hand ruffled its way through Ben’s hair as he left the room, grumbling under his breath as he went.  
  
Poe rolled his eyes, dropping into the seat that Ben had left behind. One hand went to his head, rubbing at his forehead. Silence surrounded him, letting him bask in his own thoughts for the moment.  
  


* * *

  
  
Minutes later, a knock at the door came, with Kaydel coming in before Poe had even made it to the door to allow her to enter.   
  
“Did Rey take _anything_?”  
  
“Did Ben?”  
  
“Not a damn thing.”  
  



	2. Chapter 2

It’s Wednesday.   
  
Four days have passed since Poe and Finn’s wedding. Four days since Rey had snorted into her hand at Ben’s speech about Poe, four days since she danced with Rose and Kaydel, and four days since she had waved Finn off into married life.   
  
Rey busied herself at the front of Takodana Flowers, occasionally glancing up at the clock upon the yellow wall behind the counter where Rose Tico was sitting and fixing a small bouquet together. The ticking of the clock is lost amongst the radio that played along, the station occasionally playing something that Rey can hum along to or even sing under her breath. It’s a comfortable familiarity to her day, going through the motions and occasionally greeting the customers that come into the flowershop. The town is small enough that Rey has long since learnt everyone’s names, and they all know her. Sometimes people simply stop by to visit Rey.   
  
And like every Wednesday, Ben Solo will leave Naberrie’s around lunchtime and walk across to join Rey with lunch for both of them. Rey doesn’t even remember how their tradition started. She just knows that it’s been going on for as long as she can remember, Ben coming from Naberrie’s to Takodana Flowers every Wednesday and Friday to join her for lunch, and usually with her lunch containing some sort of pastry or sweet treat that Ben will slip into the bag for her.   
  
It’s around the fifth time Rey looked up to the window, standing between bunches of pink and purple tulips, that Rose laughed at her from behind the counter. Rey turned to look at her, a light frown furrowing upon her brow.

“Is he late?”   
  
When Rey doesn’t answer, Rose placed down the bouquet in her hands, gently laying it upon the counter. Rey stepped out from between the buckets of flowers, carefully weaving her way around them. She arrived at the counter, hopping onto it with a swift push upward.   
  
“I wasn’t looking for Ben.”   
  
“Are you sure?” Rose nudged Rey’s side lightly. “It hit twelve thirty minutes ago and he’s not here yet.”   
  
“And?”  
  
Rey looked to Rose, a brow raising slightly. Rose held her gaze for mere moments before she shrugged, leaving Rey to smooth her expression out. They sit in a comfortable quiet for another few minutes, both of them humming under their breath to the radio. Just as Rose went to speak again, there’s a large figure blocking out the gentle sunlight from the doorway, and Rey is off of the counter before the bell can ring.  
  
Ben Solo entered Takodana Flowers, looking both incredibly out of place simply because of his hulking size filling the empty space in the centre of the room, and incredibly at home when Rey made her way to greet him, drawing a smile from his lips before he can even think about it. There’s a paper bag clutched in one of his hands, as if it’s an entirely new thing they’re doing rather than their usual tradition. Ben greeted Rose with a half-wave, like he did every time their paths seemed to cross, before his gaze centred back upon Rey.   
  
“Lunch?”  
  
“Depends what’s in the bag.”   
  
Rey took the moment to nudge the bag in Ben’s hands, making Ben swiftly move and hold it higher than she could have possibly reached. Amusement played in his gaze, watching her shift her weight so that one foot moved in front of the other, and her arms folded.  
  
“Rey.” Ben lowered the bag, albeit carefully, but kept it firmly out of Rey’s reach. “You would eat whatever was in here either way, scavenger.”   
  
“Bold of you to assume, Solo.”  
  
There’s a beat that passes between them, until Rey is nodding toward the front of the shop. Ben took the hint, giving Rose another nod of recognition before he slipped out of the door once again. Rey makes short work of tidying herself up, shedding her apron and smoothing down the yellow and white striped tee she had thrown on that morning, before she followed Ben out of the door.   
  
The small, round garden table at the front of Takodana Flowers is almost filled with the bag Ben brought across from the bakery, Ben having delved into it before Rey even got a chance to look. She takes up the seat opposite where Ben’s sat, currently making his chair seem miniature from the way he takes up every inch, never quite looking comfortable in it, but in all the time they have been sharing lunch, Ben is yet to complain.

  
“What’s actually in the bag?”   
  
“What did you ask for?”   
  
Rey’s face practically lights up at the thought. Every now and then, she gives Ben suggestions for the next lunch. They go through the same process – Ben will roll his eyes at Rey’s suggestion, bluntly refuse to make the lunch and usually comment on the sugar intake, to which Rey always bites back that he bakes cakes for a living. Every time Rey has made a suggestion, Ben has never actually not followed through with making it despite the playful grumbles he goes through before the next time they meet.   
  
“I thought you weren’t making it?”   
  
“I wasn’t,” Ben comments, handing over Rey’s half of their lunch, “but I’ve seen how feral you can get.”  
  
“Feral?”   
  
“Absolutely.”   
  
Ben’s gaze held Rey’s until she huffed, all mirth and no real malice. She took the lunch with a quiet sound, before the two of them fell into conversation. Her eyes wandered over him, noting how his pale skin contrasted with the crisp black of the tee he wore. She listened just as much as she looked, taking in his story of the latest cake that he was decorating just across the street.   
  
  


* * *

  
  
Lunch was over before Rey realised. Ben jogged back across the road on a quick goodbye, leaving Rey with the small box of freshly made macarons. She lingered outside for a moment longer than necessary, watching Ben’s form disappear into Naberrie’s, and his figure draw away from the window she usually sees him from. She picked up the box of sweet treats carefully, stepping back inside Takodana Flowers with a small smile playing upon her lips.   
  
Rey likes Ben Solo.   
  
She likes the way he seemed to sneak glances out of the shop window just to wave at her. She likes the way Ben will rush out from Naberrie’s when it’s pouring out to help her get things inside the shop floor. She likes the way he goes out of his way to bring her dinner two days of the week when he doesn’t have to, and how he always surprises her with a treat to appease her sweet tooth. She likes how carefully he decorates cakes, something he shouldn’t be able to do with hands like he has, she thinks. She likes the sarcasm he seems to exude without even trying. She likes the late-night texts they share and the conversations they seem to have about everything and nothing. She likes the way the tops of his ears will turn red when he’s embarrassed, and how he tries to hide them under his dark hair. She likes the way his nose will scrunch up when he speaks sometimes. She likes how his smile always looks hidden, like it’s a gift to be careful with rather than share.  
  
Most of all, Rey likes how _easy_ everything is with Ben. How they fall into place together, like it was always meant to be.   
  
But to Rey, none of that seemed to add up to anything more than what she and Ben already had.   
  
  


* * *

  
  
Rey was sweeping the floor behind the counter when the doorbell rang, alerting her to someone entering. Rose had long since gone home, leaving Rey alone with only the radio playing. The sun was starting to set outside, spring not quite in full swing just yet. A beaming smile fixed itself on Rey’s lips as she looked over, her hands freeing themselves of the brush.   
  
“Leia!”  
  
Rey exchanged a quick hug with the woman. It’s not often that Leia visits Takodana Flowers, but that doesn’t mean that Rey doesn’t know who she is. She had been introduced not long after she had started working for Maz to Leia Organa.  
  
“I was just about to close up.”  
  
“Ben mentioned,” Leia nodded. Rey didn’t miss the way a smile seemed to tug at Leia’s lips, but she chose not to comment on it. Leia moved across to admire the bouquet Rose had left in a vase upon the counter, letting her fingers brush against one of the petals of the peonies.   
  
“Han and I are celebrating our anniversary soon. Three weeks.”   
  
“Oh?”   
  
“Silly, really, after all this time to be throwing a party for it, but – we’re going to. Well, I am – Han’s going to be Han about it.” Leia turned to look at her, amusement in her dark eyes that seemed so much like Ben’s.   
  
“He loves a party,” Rey rolled her eyes, laughing along with her. “Even when he’s grumbling and complaining.”   
  
“Exactly. Ben’s going to be doing the cake.”  
  
Rey nodded. She expected nothing less – of course Ben would be making the cake for his parents wedding anniversary. It was on the tip of her tongue to tell to Leia that Ben hadn’t mentioned so much as a wedding anniversary to her, but then, Leia didn’t leave her space to.   
  
“And I want you to do the flowers.”  
  
“Me?”  
  
“You’re the best,” Leia stated. “And of course, we want you there too.”   
  
“Leia –”  
  
“You should talk to Ben. Come up with some themes.” Leia turned on her heel before Rey could finish getting her words out, waving over her shoulder. “You two work so well together. I’m sure you’ll come up with something perfect.”   
  
Rey watched Leia leave without another word. She braced herself against the counter, the hum of the music filling her ears.   
  
A few moments later, she saw the light at Naberrie’s go out.  
  
Rey took that moment to fish her phone from her pocket, quickly scroll through the texts in the group chat and see the latest pictures Poe and Finn had sent from their honeymoon, and then pull up Ben’s number.   
  
It only took until the second ring for Ben to mumble his hello to her, and for Rey to smile at the sound of his voice.  
  
“Seems like we’re both working your parents’ anniversary.”  
  
“She roped you into it too, did she?” Ben’s laugh down the line made Rey giggle under her breath.   
  
“She said we should talk about ideas.”   
  
“When do you want to?”   
  
“Are you busy this weekend?"   
  
There's a silence on the other end of the line. Rey bites her lip, hesitant of the answer.   
  
"No." Ben skips a beat. "Does Saturday work for you?"   
  
"Saturday would be great." 

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Thank-you for such a positive response on this AU! It was too good to pass up writing.
> 
> If you liked this chapter, please let me know!


	3. Chapter 3

Saturday night arrives, and Ben is standing outside Rey’s door.  
  
It had been Rey’s choice to meet at her apartment – Takodana Flowers had closed an hour before Naberrie’s did on Saturdays, so Rey would have time to draw up some ideas before Ben arrived.  
  
In one hand, Ben’s clutching a box of leftover cinnamon rolls that he knows Rey will work her way through during the night. His other hand raised, knocking lightly on the door. He hears the hurried footsteps behind it, bringing a gentle smile to his lips that only grows when Rey opened the door.  
  
“Hi.”  
  
“Hi,” Rey breathed, then looked down to the box Ben was holding. “Is that for me?”  
  
“Leftover from today,” Ben nodded, holding them out for her. “I thought you’d like them.”  
  
“You know me so well, Ben.”  
  
“I know your _appetite_ so well.”  
  
His eyes rolled, following Rey inside from her unspoken beckoning. She was already halfway into the box by the time Ben had closed the door behind him, and biting into a cinnamon roll by the time he had shed his coat and hung it up near the door. The muffled moan draws a tightness across his chest, making him glance over as Rey digs into the treat, with the box still open upon the kitchen countertop. Ben was about to speak when he spotted something from the corner of his eye, making him groan inwardly.  
  
“Bee-Bee?”  
  
“Poe doesn’t get back while Tuesday,” Rey laughed, “and you didn’t want him.”  
  
Ben eyed the large cat wandering over to him to curl around his legs. He looked at Rey, almost helpless, before she laughed in a way that made the slight irritation from the brush of Bee-Bee against his legs ease.  
  
“He’s just a cat.”  
  
“A spoilt, fat one. Poe’s ruined him.”  
  
“Ben!”  
  
By now, Rey was licking her fingers clean. The lid of the box had been closed, but Ben knew better than to think Rey’s finished. He gives it another thirty minutes or so before Rey’s devouring her second, and even that timeframe was being generous. His attention split from Rey and to Bee-Bee, trying to move without causing an accident. Before he could even open his mouth to shoo the cat away from him, Rey made her way over and scooped Bee-Bee into her arms. She shook her head, silently inviting Ben to follow her to the couch. There was already paper upon the bright yellow – Rey had painted it herself – coffee table, splayed about in a haphazard way that Ben knows Rey comes with when it comes to absolutely _anything_. He likes that about her.  
  
  
As a matter of fact, there are a lot of things that Ben likes about Rey.  
  
He likes that she’s not afraid to speak her mind. He likes her accent, finding he could listen to her talk about anything and everything at all, just so he can drink more of it in. He likes how she seems to revel in the rain, foregoing an umbrella almost every time. He likes the way she hums along to music. He likes the way she will offer a half-wave each time he catches sight of her through the window of Takodana Flowers, all the way across from Naberrie’s. He likes the way she looks and talks about her flowers as if they’re the most beautiful things in the world. He likes the way that she has to have a ridiculous amount of plantlife in her apartment. He likes the way she involves splashes of yellow throughout her life, which is exactly the colour Ben would associate with her even if he didn’t know how much she adored it. He likes the late-night texts, and the occasional early morning phone calls when Rey will grumble into the phone, because she’s not a morning person. He likes how easily Rey fits in with his parents, and how much both seem to love her. He likes the dusting of freckles upon Rey’s sun-kissed skin, and the way she throws her hair up in three buns. He likes the way her smile seems to light up a room, leaving Ben in awe every single time that very smile is directed toward him.  
  
Most of all, Ben likes how easily Rey just seems to _fit_. How she arrived in town, and how quickly she seemed to work her way into his life and stay there, like they were always meant to find each other.   
  
But Ben – he never really thinks upon any of it too much.  
  
Not even now, when he’s leaning back against the couch, listening to Rey talk animatedly about flower arrangements and her ideas for themes. Bee-Bee has – thankfully – left the two of them alone, and Ben can’t help but notice the music that’s playing in the background. The sleeves of Rey’s yellow sweatshirt are pushed up to her elbows, exposing the tanned skin Ben often wonders how many freckles are upon. He watched as she pulled more pieces with scribbles upon toward her, passing them toward him.  
  
“What do you think about these?”  
  
A low rumble sounds out between the shuffling of papers and the hum of music. Ben glanced toward Rey, a brow arching before he can even take in the light dusting of colour high upon her cheeks.  
  
“Was that your stomach?” Before she can answer, Ben leaned forward, reaching for his phone on the coffee table. “You haven’t had dinner, have you?”  
  
“I’m snacking my way through the cinnamon rolls, Ben.”  
  
Not another word passed. Instead, Ben handed his phone to Rey, giving her an almost flat look that left little room for argument, though Ben knew if she wanted to protest, Rey most definitely would.  
  
“We’re not doing anything until you’ve had dinner. Get what you want, I’m buying.”  
  
  


* * *

  
  
Almost four hours later, a bottle of cheap wine was open on the coffee table, almost empty. Papers with half formed ideas in-between the boxes of Chinese food that Ben and Rey had worked their way through, Rey more so than Ben. The music that had been playing on low had been exchanged for watching movies, though even that had fallen to the wayside. Instead, Rey was almost snorting with laughter into her hand, dangerously close to spilling her glass of wine that was clutched in the other hand.  
  
“You can’t tell that story at your parents wedding anniversary.”  
  
“Rey, nearly all the stories involving my dad are along a similar line.”  
  
“But it’s their wedding anniversary!”  
  
Rey commented, pushing Ben’s shoulder lightly with the hand that was no longer covering her mouth. Ben doesn’t notice the way Rey’s hand lingered upon the black wool of his sweater, or the way her gaze seemed to follow the movement of her hand.  
  
“And?”  
  
“And they’re your parents!”  
  
“Trust me, my mother will find it amusing.”  
  
“You think?”  
  
“I know.”  
  
Ben leaned forward, filling up his glass halfway. There’s no way he’s driving home, he internally notes. He’ll have to leave his car here, and pick it – and more than likely, Rey – up in the morning.  
  
The scattered papers caught Ben’s attention again. His hands work their way through the drawings Rey has doodled upon them, looking over her sketches for the arrangements, and his that have joined them for the cake. He turned to her, watching her pull one knee up to her chest to sit more comfortably. The jeans have gone and Rey is in plaid pyjama shorts instead. The pale-yellow knitted throw that had started on the back of the couch is now pooled at Rey’s side, having thrown it off the warmer she complained about growing after each glass of wine. For a moment, it’s all Ben can do to stare at her, before there’s a confused look forming in her eyes, and he realises she must wonder what he’s staring at. His tongue darts out to lick the corner of his mouth, and his throat cleared. His attention turned back to the papers, shuffling through them again.  
  
“Have you settled on a theme?”  
  
“I don’t know,” Rey groaned.  
  
The glass of wine was dangerously close to spilling, forcing Ben to take it from her and place it down on the table. Rey joined him on the edge of the couch, her leg brushing against his. Ben looks at her, watching her rub her hands over her face.  
  
“I can’t think of a theme that fits both of them,” Rey huffed. “Your mother is so elegant, and Han’s…”  
  
“Han.” Ben chuckled. “I know.”  
  
Another groan fell from Rey’s lips. Ben laughed, watching her slide from the edge of the couch and into the gap between it and the coffee table. Ben throws the comforter over one of her shoulders as she shifts things around, rooting her way through the papers and underneath the empty boxes of food.  
  
“Don’t you have any ideas?”  
  
“Well, going with the actual wedding anniversary gift isn’t a bad idea. Coral is thirty-five, and they’ve been married thirty-five years this time.”  
  
“I suppose I could do arrangements of coral coloured flowers…”  
  
Ben can tell by the way Rey trailed off that the idea hadn’t settled well with her. Ben shifted another piece of paper, uncovering one particular piece with sunflowers sketched into the arrangements. His head tilted, taking in the simplicity of the arrangement.  
  
“What about this one?”  
  
“That’s –”  
  
The piece of paper is taken from Ben’s hand before he has a chance to clutch it properly. He looked down at Rey, who was folding the paper quickly. A light frown formed upon Ben’s brow, waiting for an answer.  
  
“I was just doodling.” Rey shrugged, tilting her head so that her chin is almost pressed against his thigh.  
  
“You never use sunflowers in your arrangements.”  
  
“Nobody ever asks for them.” Rey sighs. “Which, I always find sad because I always think they’re happy flowers. They’re my favourites.”  
  
A quiet sound of appreciation passed Ben’s lips. Up until then, Ben hadn’t known Rey’s favourite flower, which is something he thinks he would’ve known long ago. It amused him, in an odd way, to think that he had never once before thought of asking Rey her favourite type of flower.  
  
Looking at it now, it makes sense. Sunflowers suit Rey perfectly.  
  
But he doesn’t make another murmur about them. Instead, Ben filters through their collective pile of sketches. Rey still has the folded paper clutched in her hand, and her head has turned so that her chin is no longer touching his thigh. Instead, her cheek rests against him, without so much as a care in the world.  
  
Ben doesn’t mind.  
  
“How about…”  
  
  


* * *

  
  
It's past midnight before Ben leaves. There’s a second bottle of wine upon the coffee table, half full. They had both settled on an idea hours before, but with Ben having no real reason to leave so soon after, and Rey insisting that they watch another movie because they hadn’t watched either of the last two properly.  
  
Ben lingered in the doorway, shrugging on his coat as he watched Rey yawn. She was swaying lightly, leaving him to determine whether it was from the wine intake or from the drowsiness that had overtaken her in the last twenty minutes of the movie. Ben’s shoulder is still warm from where Rey had nestled against him, snoring lightly.  
  
“I’ll pick you up in the morning?”  
  
All Rey gives him in return is a quiet noise of agreement. Another noise from Rey has him turning, and before he can process what is happening, Rey’s curled her arms around his waist, hugging him tightly. He can feel her nuzzle against the wool of his jumper. Ben’s arms slip around her easily, and somewhere in his mind, he notes – as he does every time – how small she is when she’s in his arms.  
  
“Thanks for dinner.”  
  
Ben can’t help but laugh.  
  
“Who am I to come between you and your stomach?”  
  
Ben, without thought, ducks his head to press a light kiss into her hair. Rey doesn’t notice. His arms slip from around her first, gently placing his hands on the tops of her arms to get her to release him. Rey blinked up at him, slowly, and offered the smile that seems to make Ben’s heart clench every time it’s directed at him.  
  
“Go to bed, Rey.”  
  
“If you say so.”  
  
There’s another quiet goodbye before Rey finally shuts her door. Ben took a last look at the door before he started off, tugging the collar of his coat up to offer some form of protection against the chill of the night. However, the entire thing is in vain once he steps out of Rey’s building and finds that there’s rain pouring down relentlessly.  
  
All Ben can think about as he sets off running is how much Rey would love to be out in the downpour.  
  
  


**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I'm so grateful for all the support for this fic. Thank-you all so much!


	4. Chapter 4

It’s the day of Han and Leia’s wedding anniversary.   
  
The party itself was being held at their home; the same home Ben grew up in. It’s nestled overlooking one of the lakes that Naboo is home to, a home passed down through the generations of Ben’s maternal grandmother’s side of the family. Rey has seen it a number of times, likening it each time to something out of a fairy-tale, but never been in it for as long as she’s about to be.   
  
Everything was already set up. Rey’s arrangements of flowers carefully dotted around the balconies and two rooms where Leia and Han will be hosting the party. She had settled upon flowers that she hoped would represent the couple – white snapdragons for Leia, Forget-Me-Nots for Han – dotted in with lilac freesia, among other flowers and foliage that Rey had woven together to make the arrangements themselves.   
  
Rey had been over hours before to make sure everything was set exactly how she wanted it to be. Usually, she and Ben are always together for setting up events, but Rey had set up alone that afternoon, with Ben nowhere in sight. She had seen him that morning, of course, waving to him from Takodana Flowers. That had been the most she had seen of Ben all day, but she knew that as soon as she stepped out of her car and made her way inside, he would be hard to miss.   
  
She smoothed out her yellow sundress – Leia had insisted that guests hadn’t to arrive too formally dressed, mostly on Han’s behalf who Rey knew would not be looking too formal himself – and gave herself a last look in the rear-view mirror. She had opted for a different hairstyle, foregoing her three buns to wear it in a half up, half down style. Her brown locks fell freely around her shoulders, brushing against her sun-kissed skin lightly. Another breath passed her lips before she left the comfort of the drivers’ seat and the car entirely to make her way inside.   
  
  


* * *

  
  
Ben wasn’t the first person she saw.   
  
As a matter of fact, Rey couldn’t make him out at all in the first of the rooms. People bustled around her, waiters walking through with plates of food to offer guests, and music played to fill the spaces between conversations happening wherever Rey stepped. Her gaze remained curious, trying to find at least one of her friends.  
  
“There you are!”   
  
A light tap on the shoulder made Rey turn. A smile took over once she took in Finn, who held an arm out for her to hug him. Rey instantly leaned into the contact, patting him lightly on the back. When they parted, he took one look down at her dress and sandals combination and chuckled under his breath.   
“I knew you’d wear something yellow,” he confirms, just as Rey made to ask what had amused him. “Poe owes me money.”   
  
“You bet on it?”   
  
“Poe bet. I _knew_.” Finn craned his head, looking around for his husband. “You have to come with me and show him.”   
  
Rey took a glass from a passing waiter, sipping the champagne as Finn continued to look around. Her own gaze wandered, catching sight of several people she knew from around town. All offered her gentle waves, or pointed to a set of her arrangements with a smile to compliment them and her. Still, there was no Leia, or Han, or even Ben to be seen as she tried to look through the crowd. Leia would be easy to miss – but not Han, and definitely not Ben. He would tower over the guests like he usually did over most people, and Rey could only picture how displaced he would look, even in his childhood home.   
  
“Have you seen Ben yet?”   
  
The question slips past Rey’s lips before she even realises what she’s asked. Finn turned, breaking his search for Poe. Rey watched his lips twitch, his brows gently crease together, before his head tilts. The look in Finn’s eye is one Rey can’t quite place.   
  
“Ben?”  
  
“I haven’t seen him.” Rey explained. “Not even this morning when I was setting up.”   
  
“He was with Rose, last time I saw him,” Finn replied. There’s a pause. “Maybe you should go find him. I’ll catch up with you later when I’ve found Poe to prove that I was right.”   
  
“Where were they?”   
  
“In the next room, near the doors to the balcony.”  
  
That was all the information Rey needed. She set off with her glass in hand, weaving her way through the crowd that she greets people in as she passes them. Naboo, in contrast to Jakku, has always been welcoming. Almost everyone at the party knows her name, or at least knows of her. The people aren’t harsh or short with her, but polite and interested. Even those that Rey doesn’t know that well – like Ben’s uncle Lando, who she passes on her way – know who she is and offer compliments of her work.   
  
The next room is brighter. The doors to the balcony are wide and open, letting the spring breeze in to tease at the pale green curtains that have been tied off to expose the floor to ceiling windows properly. The music is still playing in this room, but the chatter is quieter from people filtering out onto the balcony to look upon the lake.  
  
It doesn’t take Rey a second look to spot Ben.  
  
True to Finn’s word, Ben is standing with Rose. Both of them are holding half-filled glasses of champagne. Rey can see Ben’s mouth threatening to curl into a smile but it hasn’t quite reached its peak yet, and she can hear Rose’s peal of laughter. There’s something that twinges inside her chest as she watches them, how it seems like an effortless conversation. She falters in her step toward them, and is intent on turning back on her heel when Ben notices her.   
  
Rey’s stomach flips when she watches the twitch of his lips grow into a fully-fledged smile.   
  
It takes him barely seconds to excuse himself from Rose and make his way toward her. A breathless smile plays upon Rey’s lips when he comes to a halt in front of her.  
  
“Your hair’s different.”   
  
Rey can tell that Ben’s even surprised himself. Beneath his dark hair, she can see the tops of his ears turning red. She laughed, offering him a gentle nudge to diffuse the embarrassment she can see forming.   
  
“You clean up well too, Solo.”   
  
Ben always looks good, Rey thought, but today is a contrast from his usual dark shirt or sweater. His shirt is white, almost blaring with the colour, and it’s rolled up at his elbows. The collar is open, top button undone, exposing the pale column of his neck freely. She has to tilt her head back slightly to look up properly, and it’s then that she notes his gaze hasn’t broken away from her once. His mouth is open, his tongue darting out to lick his bottom lip. Rey rocks from one foot to the other.   
  
“You look –”  
  
Whatever Ben is about to say is silenced by a call of Rey’s name. Han and Leia are both walking toward the pair. They break apart unintentionally, creating a slight space between them as Ben’s parents come to a halt in front of them. Rey greets both with a smile, while Ben has his shoulder patted by his mother. Han turns to Rey, raising his glass to her to clink it with hers.   
  
“Flowers are great, Rey.”   
  
“Han!” There’s a swift elbow to his ribs from Leia, though there’s no real force behind it. “That’s all you can come up with?”   
  
“Princess, if you’d let me finish -”  
  
“Beautiful,” Ben interrupts. “The arrangements are beautiful, Rey. Just like the ones you drew up.”  
  
“Thank-you.” There’s a blush on Rey’s cheeks. “I haven’t seen the cake yet, though?”  
  
“I’ll take you,” Han offers before Ben can answer. He looks helplessly toward Rey, and then to his mother, but Rey is already being ushered away from the two of them. She only offers a soft backward glance to him as she’s led away, while Ben appears to be being launched into conversation with Leia.   
  
Han swaps his glass of champagne on the way with a passing waiter. Rey notes that he doesn’t have formal clothes on, just like she knew he wouldn’t. Rey can’t quite believe that he’s wearing trousers rather than jeans, though. Han shoots her a look as Rey stays close to his side.   
  
“All of this was Leia’s idea. This party, all these guests? I would’ve just been happy with dinner.”   
  
“Thirty-five years is a long time to be married.”   
  
“You’re telling me. How I’ve managed to keep her for that long is something I’ll never understand.”   
  
“She loves you,” Rey nudges him lightly. “And who else would put up with you, anyway?”  
  
“You better watch it, Rey.” Han’s brow shoots up, pointing a finger at her. She can see the amusement underneath Han’s gesture – the two of them had always had a similar relationship. The light teasing continued until Rey realised Han had come to a stop at a small row of tables, where a – no doubt – expensive buffet was waiting, and where, directly in front of them, the cake was standing.   
  
It was beautiful. The three white tiers were each decorated in a delicate lace pattern, lilac and blue to match the two main colours Rey had picked out for the flowers that she thought suited Han and Leia best. Ben had put his heart into the cake, Rey could see that much. It complimented her flowers perfectly, the colours alive upon the white icing.   
  
“Almost similar to the one we had when we actually got married,” Han informed Rey, gesturing around them. “All of this – the party – this is exactly what we had, except there were definitely more people. We didn’t do it here, either – Leia’s parents did, but she didn’t want to get married here.”  
  
“It’s a beautiful place to get married.”   
  
Rey’s focus remained on the cake for a moment longer. It still amazed her, even how, how Ben’s hands could create something so delicate.   
  
“Wouldn’t have been big enough.”   
  
“I wouldn’t want a big wedding.”   
  
“What kind of wedding would you have?”   
  
Rey’s mouth closed instantly. She turned to Han, bewildered that she had even uttered the statement, but it was far too late to pass it off as a muttering under her breath. Han had heard, and even asked. He waited, brows raised, and gestured vaguely with his hands as if to encourage her to continue.   
  
“I mean… I’d only want a small one. Something just enough for my friends to be there. And I’d have sunflowers. Just sunflowers, all around.”  
  
“Sunflowers.”  
  
“They’re my favourite.”   
  
There’s a hum from Han. Rey’s gaze flickers from him and back to the cake. There’s a gentle press of a hand against her shoulder as Han leaves her side, excusing himself quietly to go and find Leia again and keep the festivities going. It’s only a moment between Rey being alone and Kaydel wrapping her arms around her, drawing away from the cake and into the buffet.   
  
  


* * *

  
  
The spring breeze brushed against Ben’s dark locks, shifting them against his cheek. He had made his way out onto the balcony a while after parting ways with his mother inside, and after an awkward conversation with Poe that made Ben want the ground to come alive and devour him whole, just so he didn’t have to listen to Poe for any further amount of time.   
  
Poe only wanted to discuss one thing.   
  
Ben can’t even count how many different ways Poe had tried to work the topic of Rey into conversation. How she looked different, how beautiful her arrangements were, how she seemed to shine in her yellow dress – that he now owed Finn money on a bet for.   
  
Ben had to excuse himself.   
  
Of course he had noticed that Rey looked different. Of course he had noticed how beautiful her arrangements were, and of course he had noticed how beautiful she looked in her yellow dress. Poe was simply pointing out the obvious, in Ben’s opinion. Poe’s incessant need to make sure Ben knew and had seen Rey was ridiculous to him. Rey was Rey, and in such a brightly coloured dress, was incredibly hard to miss.   
  
Even now in-between the crowd inside the room the balcony led back to, he could see Rey entertaining conversation with Maz Kanata, who had announced her arrival by booming both Ben’s and his father’s name across the room, and his Uncle Chewie.   
  
“Hey, kid.”   
  
Ben turned to see his father approaching him. Ben shifted upon the bench, allowing room for Han to sit by his side. He raised his glass in recognition, clinking it against Han’s with slightly more force than he should have. The two sat in comfortable quiet for several moments, Ben catching glimpses of Rey between the crowd, watching her expressions become animated as she spoke with Maz and Chewie. A smile of his own curled onto his lips, one Ben was unaware of until his father questioned it.   
  
“Smiling, huh?”  
  
“It’s a natural expression.”  
  
“Sure that’s all it is?” Han chuckled. Ben resisted the urge to roll his eyes.   
  
“Your mother loves the cake.”   
  
“And you?”  
  
“I think you spent a lot of time looking at old pictures,” Han shrugged. “Looks pretty similar to the one your mother and I had originally.”   
  
“Rey and I spent a while coming up with designs.” Ben took another sip of his champagne. “I thought that design would work with her arrangements.”   
  
Another moment of silence passed. Ben’s glass was almost empty, the last sip waiting in the bottom of the glass to be consumed. He looked to his father, who seemed to be squinting at the handfuls of people dotted around in the room facing them, and upon the balcony.   
  
“What?”   
  
“Just thinking about this is definitely your mother’s kind of thing.” Han looked to Ben. “The party, the people – this is more her than it is me. It was the same at our wedding. Your mother, she had a lot of people around her. Me? Not so much.”  
  
“I’d be more inclined to be like you.”   
  
“Not so many people?”   
  
“I wouldn’t want a big wedding.” Ben clarified. “Something small.”   
  
“Something small.” Han repeated back. Ben, watching the last sip of his drink swirl around his glass as he moved it, missed the amusement in Han’s tone.   
  
“And the cake – it’d be yellow.”  
  
“Yellow.”   
  
“And there’d be sunflowers.”   
  
“Because…?”  
  
“Because they’re happy flowers.” Ben turns to Han, almost incredulously. “Her favourites?”   
  
“Ben.” Han’s smiling at him. “Who is _she_?”  
  
“She’s –”  
  
  
 _Oh.  
  
_  
  
It’s then that Ben’s world seems to shake. Without even realising it, he had been describing a wedding with someone who Ben hadn’t even realised had worked his way into his heart so effortlessly. His mouth opened and closed, trying to find the name that had fallen from his lips every single day without fail for almost three years.   
  
Han’s hand fell upon his shoulder, offering a reassuring squeeze.   
  
“I know.”  
  
Ben stares at his father, now only just noticing the look of amusement – and if he looks hard enough, relief – etched onto Han’s features. His father’s hand moves, taking the glass from his hand as if it’s enough to get Ben to move. When he remained rooted to the spot, Han gave a second attempt at encouragement.   
  
“Go get her, kid.”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> This is the first time I've been able to put a chapter count on this fic! I think we have roughly two chapters left. Thank-you all for sticking with this fic, I'm so grateful for all your support and kind words!


	5. Chapter 5

Maz and Chewie had parted ways with Rey only moments before Rose slips her arm in with Rey’s, linking the two of them together. There’s a glass in Rose’s hand that forces Rey to part from her side slightly as the contents of it threaten to spill over and find their way onto Rey’s dress. Her head turned to catch sight of Rose, who was grinning brightly. Rey laughed, tugging Rose along with her, away from the balcony doors she had been stood in front of when Maz and Chewie had been the ones entertaining her conversation. The two moved from one room to the next, where the crowd appears to have thinned out, and more of the room could be seen.  
  
Now, Rey could see the framed pictures that decorated the walls – ones of Han and a teenage Ben with Han’s famed car lovingly nicknamed the ‘Falcon’, one of a toddler Ben holding onto Leia’s hand, his dark hair braided. There were a few more depicting teenage Ben and his younger self with his parents, with his uncles, with Poe, and some that didn’t contain Ben at all. Rey was focused on the one that had brought a smile to her lips – one of Ben maybe seven or eight years old, wearing one of Han’s helmets from Han’s flying days.  
  
“Rey?”  
  
“Hm?”  
  
Rey turned to Rose, eyes wide as she was pulled out of her thoughts. Rose laughed at the evident look that meant Rey hadn’t been listening to a word she had said.  
  
“I said, Han and Leia have a beautiful home.”  
  
“They do.” Rey nodded in agreement. “It’s hard to believe Ben grew up here.”  
  
“Must’ve been something to grow up here.”  
  
“I can’t imagine growing up in a place like this.” Rey mused. “It’s beautiful, but it’s so _big_. All of this space for just Han, Leia, and Ben?”  
  
“Where _is_ Ben?”  
  
Rose shifted the conversation, but not so subtly that Rey didn’t notice. Her brow arched, shrugging softly. The same twinge in her chest from before bloomed, and was then she realised that she hadn’t seen Ben in quite a while. As a matter of fact, she hadn’t even had chance to speak to him properly yet after the swift interruption from his parents earlier. However, before Rey can voice her answer, a peal of laughter bloomed behind them.  
  
“There she is! Sunshine!”  
  
Rey turned with an eyeroll, catching sight of both Poe and Finn walking toward her and Rose. She elbowed Poe in the side once he came to stand still, earning an exaggerated exhale of air while Finn shook his head at the pair of them.  
  
“I did warn him not to call you that.” Finn turned quickly between Poe and Rey. “I did warn you not to call her that.”  
  
“How can I not call her that when she’s so _yellow_ right now?” Poe retorted before he turned back to Rey. “You’re standing out in the crowd, Niima.”  
  
“What he means is – you look beautiful, Rey.” Finn supplied.  
  
Rey opened her mouth to answer, her hands smoothing out the skirt of her dress to chase away any of the creases that had formed. Poe snickered, raising his hand to gesture toward the skirt of the dress that she had just smoothed out.   
  
“Actually, Rey, I was _just_ talking to Ben about how yellow your dress is and he was just saying –”  
  
“What was I saying exactly, Dameron?”  
  
The fifth voice cut through Poe’s comment. Ben appeared in the large doorway of the room, approaching the group with a pointed look at Poe, who seemed to offer Ben a large grin. Rey caught Ben’s gaze once he stopped moving, catching his mouth curling into the first hints of one of his hidden smiles. Her stomach flipped, much like it had done earlier, leaving a warmth coiling inside of her.  
  
“Because as far as I’m aware, I was just on the balcony talking to my dad.”  
  
Rey laughed under her breath. The look exchanged between Ben and Poe had her entirely amused, watching Poe flounder for something to say to him. Ben shot Rey a look out of the corner of his eye, only amusing her further until her laugh became fully fledged.  
  
“I was just about to mention to Rey what you thought earlier, Ben. You remember, right, Finn? You were there.”  
  
Poe looked to his husband for support, who simply offered a shrug. Poe’s face fell, staring incredulously at Finn. Rey glanced at Ben, who was smirking to himself. His gaze caught hers, holding it for the moment that it took Poe to call Finn’s name. Rose’s laughter joined the mix, earning Rey’s attention back to the group just in time to see Finn hold his hands up with a grin and step back from Poe, who immediately stepped after him. The two continued to bicker amongst themselves as she watched, until a hand gently brushed against the small of her back. A heat prickled up her neck as Ben leaned toward her, murmuring lightly. Rey could feel the tickle of his breath against her bare shoulder, causing her to shiver involuntarily.  
  
“Come with me?”  
  
  


* * *

  
  
What had started as a short trip to the balcony had become a walk down along the shore of the lake. Rey had taken Ben’s hand, letting him subtly lead her from the party. The two had escaped down the stairway on the side of the balcony, slipping out of sight so that they could walk alone. Rey had long since taken her sandals off, straying from Ben’s hand so that she could walk along the shoreline, feeling the cool water brush against her toes as they wandered. They were far enough away that the noise from the party had quietened, leaving the two of them alone with only each other for company. Rey glanced over her shoulder to see the glow of lights illuminating the balcony mixing in with the glow of the sun beginning to set. Ben walked silently beside her, carrying the shoes that she had taken off in the hand furthest from her. If she reached out, she would be able to take his hand again from how close they were walking together. Rey hummed under her breath, earning a soft chuckle from Ben from the song she had chosen to hum along to. She turned briefly toward him, seeing that he was already glancing toward her. His expression made her cheeks burn, feeling the pink tinge into her skin.  
  
“I’ve never been along the lake before.”  
  
“No?” Ben paused, nodding his head back toward the house. “My parents used to take me out on the lake when I was younger. My grandparents used to, too, but I don’t really remember.”  
  
“You don’t?”  
  
“They died when I was young. My grandmother first, and my grandfather only a month later. My mother says that they were so in love, my grandfather just couldn’t cope without her.”  
  
“Can you imagine being that in love?” Rey murmured. “To love someone that much that you just can’t… Cope without them?”  
  
“Not when I was growing up.” Ben murmured back. Rey offered a small glance, but Ben’s focus had fallen to the shore. “I used to think that I could never have the kind of love that my grandparents had. Their picture in the bakery, I used to look at it and wonder how they could’ve loved each other that much. My mother used to say I’d find it when I found it, when I was supposed to, but the older I got – especially all the problems I had before I came back to Naboo – I just expected it wasn’t something for me. I didn’t really deserve that kind of love after the way I’d acted for years.”  
  
A silence fell between them. The sun casted a beautiful glow upon the calm ripples of the lake, giving enough light so that they could see each other. Rey was still walking in the shallow tide, feeling the sand between her toes.  
  
“I felt the same way growing up.” Rey admitted quietly. She could feel Ben’s gaze upon her, but with a quiet swallow, she pushed forward. “Not just romantic love – just love itself. My parents didn’t love me enough to keep me. They left me alone. Then I went from foster home to foster home, and nobody ever really wanted me. I gave up on the idea, until I got here. It’s still strange to me, sometimes – that there’s all these people in this town who even know so much as my name or even bother to ask how I am. Then there’s Finn, and Rose, Kaydel – even Poe, and so many more.”  
  
“And me.”  
  
Rey looked up. Ben had stepped closer, almost joining her along the very edge of the shore. Rey smiled softly, nodding. Her hair brushed over her shoulders, curling against her neck gently. Ben reached his hand out, tucking her hair behind her ear.  
  
“And you.” Rey nodded. “I used to feel so alone. So… Unwanted. And then I came to Naboo.”  
  
“You’re not alone.”  
  
Rey came to a stop. She turned herself toward Ben, who had turned to face her. The same heat from before crept up the back of her neck, prickling her skin. Ben’s gaze had fixed upon her, making her draw in a shuddering breath. Those three words he had spoken so boldly had caused such an effect on her. Rey’s hands brushed against the tops of her arms, trying to chase away the chill that seemed to have settled upon her.  
  
“Neither are you.”  
  
She had the satisfaction of watching Ben’s mouth curl into one of the smiles she adored. Her breath caught in her throat, taking in how he stared at her so wholly. Upon a baited breath, Rey held out her hand as an offering. Not a moment later did Ben’s hand take hers, gentle at first – searching, almost, before he seemed to solidify the gesture within himself. His touch became firm, slipping his fingers between hers. Somewhere inside Rey’s mind did she truly note for the first time how much bigger Ben’s hand was to hers, and how gentle he was with her. The sound of her heartbeat speeding up filled her ears as she stepped toward Ben without realising, closing some of the small distance that remained between them. Ben’s gaze was warm, comforting her in a way that she didn’t know she wanted to be comforted. It was then that Rey looked at him – truly looked at him – and felt him shudder just under her gaze.  
  
“You asked me if I could imagine being so in love with someone that I couldn’t cope without them.” Ben murmured. “Until tonight, I didn’t think I could love someone that much.”  
  
Ben’s hand offered hers a gentle squeeze.  
  
“I was talking to my dad. Telling him what kind of wedding I’d have, if I ever had one… And before I realised, I’d mentioned sunflowers. He asked me why, and I said that they were ‘her favourites’. When he asked me who ‘she’ was…”  
  
Rey could feel her heart beating rapidly against her chest. Her breath had fallen into an almost strange pattern as she tried to steady herself, trying to keep her focus while her mind raced.  
  
“It’s you.”  
  
Ben stepped closer; the space between them all but gone.  
  
“I think I’ve always been waiting for you. I think I’ve loved you ever since I met you, Rey. I just didn’t know I did.”  
  
It doesn’t become a rush of overwhelming notions. Ben fell quiet, leaving Rey enough time to allow her thoughts to roll through her mind. Ben, who fell into her life three years ago, seems to have been there for longer. Ben, who makes everything so easy, who falls into perfect harmony with her –  
  
Ben, who _loves_ her.  
  
“Ben.”  
  
His name is all Rey needs to say. Her hand slipped from his to come up toward his face. A moment of hesitation, her thumb almost brushing against his top lip, before she pressed her lips against his. Her hands cupped his face just as she felt his arms wrap around her, firm in their hold. Rey had never imagined kissing him before, but now, she knows once will never be enough. Rey lost herself into the kiss, the fire that had curled into the pit of her stomach steadily growing until it threatened to consume her.  
  
In the end, it’s Rey that pulls away first. Her hands remain gently against his face, thumbs brushing along the pale cheekbones and slipping into his dark locks. A smile – a full, unbridled smile tugs at his lips as he looks down at her, his dark eyes filled with nothing but love and adoration. She can feel the brush of his hands against the small of her back, his fingertips dancing over the fabric of her dress. A breath of laughter fell from his lips, and Rey comes to rest her forehead against his chest.  
  
“Can I take you on a date?”  
  
“Right now?” Rey laughed against him. His arms came to encircle her properly, allowing her to feel the warmth spreading from him.

  
“Why not?”  
  
“I’d rather just go home,” Rey commented, “and have our kind of night in.”  
  
Rey felt Ben press a kiss to the top of her head. The water still brushed against her feet, remaining as gentle as it had been from the moment she stepped into it. A warmth filled her, spreading right through to her very fingertips.  
  
“Whatever you want.”  
  
  


* * *

  
  
Ben woke the following morning against a plush pillow that is decidedly not his, and with his arms wrapped around a lightly snoring ball of heat that has nestled against his side. His eyes opened, looking down at the brown hair that was splayed against the yellow sheets. Her nose was pressed against his chest, her breath tickling against his bare skin. The light snores that fell from her brought out an amused smile. One of his hands moved to brush through the slight tangled locks that were spread out across her freckled shoulder, brushing his fingers through the strands. He felt Rey’s nose twitch against his chest, but she didn’t wake from his gentle ministrations. Ben pressed a kiss against the top of her head and began the slow process of removing himself from the tangle of limbs that they were, careful of slipping his leg from between hers that had trapped his thigh in place. Goosebumps prickled across his pale skin as he bent to retrieve his underwear, tugging them on while he left the rest of his clothes in the pile that had formed at the foot of Rey’s bed. He gave Rey’s sleeping form one last look before he ventured from the room, making his way toward her kitchen.  
  
Rey joined him not twenty minutes later. Ben turned to see her venturing from the bedroom in little more than his white shirt from the night before, with the sleeves still rolled up and the hem of it brushing against her tanned thighs.  
  
“You’re not in bed.”  
  
“I was going to bring you breakfast.”  
  
Ben gestured to the stove, where he has the first signs of French toast cooking. Rey makes her way over to him, wrapping her arms around his waist as best she can. She rested her chin against his chest, tilting her head so that she can look up with him. Ben meets her as she rises upon the tips of her toes, pressing a kiss to her lips that he easily loses himself in. It's only the crackle of the oil behind him that gets his attention, making him break the kiss to attend to the breakfast he had been intending to bring to Rey in bed. He hears her footsteps against the laminate floor as she moves from his side, and shortly after, the crackle of the radio fills the quiet kitchen. He hears Rey hum along to the song, and realises it’s one of the things he loves about her.  
  
“Ben?”  
  
“Mm?”  
  
He turns to see Rey perched upon the kitchen side. His shirt sleeves have fallen, bunching around her wrists. Ben watches her feet swing back and forth and her head bob along to the music. Her hair spills over her shoulders, the dark locks a contrast with the white of his rumpled shirt. It takes him a moment before he meets her gaze, and for a moment, he can’t believe that they’ve never not been this way. Rey’s lips part, pausing for a moment to offer a smile before she utters three words that make his heart swell.  
  
“I love you.”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I’m beyond grateful for the kind comments and love for this fic. Thank-you all so much. Keep with me, there’s one chapter left!


	6. Chapter 6

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> There's a slight time-jump for this chapter!

_ Five years later  
  
_

It’s a Saturday in the middle of June.  
  
Both Naberrie Bakery and Takodana Flowers are closed.  
  
Ben and Rey are at home today, working a special event.  
  
  


* * *

  
  
There’s more laughter and life in the house than Ben can keep up with. He passes his mother and father near the shelves that Rey keeps too many plants on in the living room, leaving the drinks he brought for them on Rey’s hand-painted yellow coffee table. He passes by Kaydel and Rose, who are looking at the pictures on the mantle Kaydel herself took at Rey and Ben’s small wedding a little under five years ago, barely months after they had spent their first night together.  
  
Rey, with her hair down, and not wearing yellow – save for her shoes – was smiling at Ben as the two stood behind the yellow cake that had sunflowers made carefully out of icing perched upon the top tier. Rey’s hand was curled around Ben’s yellow tie, pulling him closer. Kaydel had taken the picture right before Rey had both kissed him and shoved a handful of the cake in his face.  
  
There’s a few more people he passes on his way through to the back door and the garden. His uncle Lando claps him on the shoulder as Ben passes, exchanging greetings near the door that leads into the garden.   
  
“Hey, starfighter.”  
  
“Don’t you think I’m too old for that?” Ben comments, but the curl of his lips is evident that he doesn’t mind.  
  
“Sorry, kid. Once a name sticks, it sticks.” Lando laughed. “Works for the little one, too.”  
  
Ben follows Lando’s gesture toward the open door, leaving his uncle behind as he steps out into the garden. There are shrieks of laughter that are filling the air, intertwined with excited voices. Ben sneaks a glance at the table he had dragged outside that morning, covered over with a white cloth. In the middle of the table stands a three-tier birthday cake, alternating from a rainbow tier, to a tier covered with rainbow sprinkles, and to finally, the top, sky-blue tier with white clouds placed strategically around it. Pale blue butterflies inch their way up from the bottom tier to the top, where they were met with a candle displaying the number ‘4’.  
  
Surrounding the cake are little bunches of daisies and sunflowers that Rey had spent an hour that morning setting up, and after that, the white cloth is mostly hidden by the abundance of gifts that cover the table in shiny wrapping paper that Ben can’t look at for too long with the way the sun is glaring off of them.  
  
He lingers near the table, lost in thought for a moment.  
  
His wife appears by his side and gently nips at his hip with her lithe fingers.  
  
“Admiring your own work, Solo?”  
  
Ben turns his head to allow Rey to see his full expression while he knocks his hip against hers. The yellow of her vest makes her skin somehow seem warmer. Rey stands tall, making enough effort to press a kiss to the underside of Ben’s jaw.  
  
“I don’t think I’ve ever had so many demands in one cake,” Ben’s voice is filled with amusement. “Or used that much chocolate.”  
  
“You know what she’s like.”  
  
“Too well.”  
  
Ben dips his head to catch Rey’s lips with his own, smiling into it softly. He pushes for more, gently, as Rey curls herself into him and one of his arms finds its way around her waist. Rey tastes the same as she always does – a hint of sugar on his tongue.  
  
“This is a _children’s_ birthday party!”  
  
Ben groans against Rey as she breaks into a laugh. She brushes her fingertips against his jaw in a soothing notion as he lifts his head up, his flat gaze focusing on Poe, who was walking up from the bottom of the garden, past the flowerbeds that Rey tends to almost daily. Poe comes to a stop in front of the pair, shaking his head.  
  
“You know, I still can’t believe that we, collectively, worked for almost three years to get you two idiots together and Han managed it in less than three hours,” Poe huffs.  
  
It’s his favourite thing to bring up – and play victim to.  
  
Coincidentally, it’s also Han’s favourite thing to bring up.  
  
“And now look at you two. Can’t keep your hands off each other for one birthday party.”  
  
“This one birthday party has been a week-long event,” Ben said dryly. “Do you know how hard it is to keep a four-year-old away from her birthday cake?”  
  
“Not yet I don’t,” Poe winked at the two of them. “Besides, I thought you said she made a good baker.”  
  
“I don’t think Bonnie’s cut out for baking.”  
  
As if on cue, there’s a shriek from the bottom of the garden where a small handful of children are playing. A bundle of dark curls – already out of the braid Ben had put in that morning – barrels her way toward her parents, slamming into Rey’s legs with an over-exaggerated squeal. Ben laughs, reaching a hand to play with a curl from his daughter’s messy hair.  
  
“What happened? Fighting a troll at the bottom of the garden?”  
  
“ _Daddy_ ,” his daughter’s head tilted all the way back, her chin resting on Rey’s leg as she huffed. “It fell out!”  
  
Ben rolls his eyes, watching as Bonnie’s dark eyes – Rey often comments how they’re so much like his own – settles upon Rey. Her face scrunches, and soon his daughter’s eyes widen in amusement.  
  
“So did Mommy’s!”  
  
Rey reaches her hands up to her hair, brushing through the locks that had – that morning when their daughter had bundled into her and Ben’s bedroom with a loud shriek – been fixed in one of the braids that Ben loves to thread through both hers and Bonnie’s hair.  
  
A braid that had fallen out in the short time Han and Leia had taken Bonnie out while Ben and Rey were supposed to be setting up the party. The brush of Ben’s dark hair against the inside of her thighs was still a fresh notion in Rey’s mind, as was the rush of everything that had followed.  
  
Ben notices the twitch in Rey’s body language as she comes up short for an answer, and he looks from Poe – who couldn’t have raised his brows higher or had a more suggestive expression on his face – and down to his daughter.  
  
“Do you want another?”  
  
“No!”  
  
Ben winces at the volume of the word. Bonnie’s little hands move from curling their way around Rey’s leg to hold her in place, and gesture at Ben to pick her up. He bends, scooping his wriggling bundle of a daughter into one arm, balancing her against his hip. Poe laughs, taking his leave from them and excusing himself to head into the house.  
  


Bonnie squirms in Ben’s arms, brushing her hands through Ben’s hair, messing with his ear, and then playing with the sequins on her vest that change from yellow to blue dependent on which way she brushed them. Ben holds her carefully as she squirms again, laughing and pointing at the cake that Ben’s made.  
  


“Can we have it yet?”  
  
“Not yet,” Rey comments before Ben can. “You have to round up your friends first, and then we can sing and have the cake.”  
  
Bonnie starts wriggling as soon as Rey’s finished speaking. Ben lowers his daughter until she’s standing. Bonnie gives her parents a last look before she’s darting to the end of the garden, shouting excitedly at the children still running around.  
  
Ben shifts, slipping behind Rey so that he can wrap both of his arms around her, and rests his chin upon the top of her head. Rey hums contentedly, leaning back against her husband with a secret smile upon her lips.  
  
“I don’t think Bonnie’s cut out for baking either.”  
  
Ben laughs. The sound causes Rey’s stomach to flip, and her chest to flutter. She tilts her head, causing him to move from where he’s resting. She presses a kiss to his jaw, then another to the column of his throat. While Ben’s distracted by her kisses, Rey shifts one of his hands to press against her stomach lightly. Ben brushes his fingertips against her, giving back the same secret smile that still plays upon Rey’s lips.  
  
Bonnie certainly wasn't cut out for baking, but maybe their next child would be. 

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Thank-you so much to everyone who has enjoyed and supported this fic. I've had the most fun writing it. Thank-you to [Madamndriver](https://archiveofourown.org/users/madamndriver/pseuds/madamndriver) for supplying such a wonderful prompt, and to [@Reylo_Prompts](https://twitter.com/reylo_prompts?ref_src=twsrc%5Egoogle%7Ctwcamp%5Eserp%7Ctwgr%5Eauthor) for retweeting it and allowing me to find it in the first place! 
> 
> If you enjoyed this final instalment, let me know?

**Author's Note:**

> This AU was too good to pass up writing! Comments mean everything; if you liked this chapter, please let me know!


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